Governing Bodies
NO FACTUAL GROUND TO PROSECUTE ME, FIFA BOSS, INFANTINO INSISTS
FIFA President Gianni Infantino has claimed there are no “factual grounds” for the ongoing criminal proceedings against him in a letter to member federations.
Infantino wrote to the 211 members following the opening of proceedings against him last month, as reported by AFP.
He said his meetings with Swiss Attorney General Michael Lauber “were in no way secret and most certainly not illegal” and the investigation against him had no “factual grounds”.
“I went to these meetings with the most senior law officer in the country in order to offer our full support and assistance in connection with the ongoing investigations because FIFA has an interest and is a damaged party in these investigations,” he said.
A special prosecutor was appointed in July to investigate the dealings between Lauber and the head of football’s world governing body.
Lauber denied any wrongdoing but offered to resign after a Swiss Court concluded he covered up meetings with Infantino and lied to supervisors while his office probed corruption surrounding FIFA.
Earlier this month, FIFA revealed Infantino would not step down from his role as President and said “nothing remotely criminal has happened”.
“At the time of the meetings between the FIFA President and the Swiss Federal Prosecutor, the Office of the Swiss Attorney General (OAG) was conducting investigations in over 20 cases in FIFA related matters and FIFA is a damaged party to those proceedings,” the FIFA spokesperson said in a statement.
“It was therefore entirely logical for the FIFA President to be meeting the Swiss Federal Prosecutor.
“Meetings or contacts between parties and prosecutors are routine during an investigation.”
In their comments, the spokesperson stressed that the reason the meetings were taking place was to build trust with the Swiss Attorney General after years of corruption, with the first meeting taking place only 24 days into the FIFA chief’s tenure.
They also denied that the meetings took place in secret, arguing transparency on FIFA’s behalf.
“The meeting venues were organised by the OAG in public places, like hotels and restaurants,” they added.
“The FIFA President did not choose the venues for the meetings.
“All the meetings were officially scheduled well ahead of time by the OAG and were mentioned in their calendars.
“There is no obligation for the FIFA President under any FIFA regulation or any law to keep minutes of any such meetings.”
By Kunle Solaja.
Nigeria is set to host the 48th Ordinary General Assembly of the Confederation of African Football (CAF), marking the third time the country will stage the continent’s top football gathering.
The development was confirmed in a statement issued by the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), which disclosed that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, on the sidelines of the ongoing Africa Forward Summit in Nairobi, Kenya, approved Nigeria’s proposal to host the event.
The approval followed a meeting between President Tinubu and CAF President Patrice Motsepe, attended by Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, NFF President Ibrahim Musa Gusau, former NFF President and Special Adviser to the CAF President Amaju Melvin Pinnick, as well as CAF Acting General Secretary Samson Adamu.
Sports Villages Square affirms that Nigeria previously hosted the CAF Congress at the National Theatre in Lagos in March 1980 and again in February 2009, when the late CAF President Issa Hayatou secured another four-year term in office.
In addition to this year’s 48th Ordinary General Assembly, scheduled for October, Nigeria also secured the hosting rights of the CAF Awards ceremony. The annual awards gala, which celebrates Africa’s top football performers, has been staged in Morocco over the past three years.
Nigeria had earlier hosted the CAF Awards when telecom firm, Globacom, was the headline sponsor. This year’s event will be the seventh to be held in Nigeria after those of 2005, 2008, 2009, 2013, 2014 and 2016.
The CAF Ordinary General Assembly traditionally attracts key football stakeholders from across the continent, including presidents of CAF’s 54 member associations, representatives of the six zonal unions and senior football administrators.
The CAF Awards ceremony is regarded as one of African football’s flagship events, honouring outstanding players, coaches, clubs and officials in a glamorous setting that showcases the continent’s football excellence.
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FIFA’s independent Ethics Committee has banned former Guyana Football Federation (GFF) General Secretary Ian Alves from all football-related activities for five years after finding he sexually harassed female staff members.
FIFA also fined Alves 20,000 Swiss francs ($22,000) after determining that he had breached provisions of the FIFA Code of Ethics relating to the protection of physical and mental integrity, abuse of position and general duties.
“FIFA has a strict stance against all forms of abuse in football,” the organisation said on Monday.
The decision followed a review of written statements from the victims, documents provided by the GFF, submissions from Alves, and other evidence gathered during the investigation.
Alves stepped down from his position in 2024.
The ban came into force on Monday, when the terms of the decision were notified to Alves, and the full grounds for the ruling will be communicated within 60 days in accordance with the Code of Ethics, FIFA added.
The GFF did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment. Alves could not immediately be reached for comment.
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FIFA President Gianni Infantino said on Thursday that he planned to seek re-election for a fourth term in a bid to continue to lead the governing body of world soccer.
Infantino confirmed he would run for the 2027–2031 term in the closing moments of the FIFA Congress in Vancouver, which comes less than two months before the start of the World Cup.
The election will be held on March 18 in Morocco, which is set to co-host the 2030 World Cup.
Infantino said he was “honoured and humbled” to have the chance to run for a fourth term.
The Italian-Swiss took office in 2016, replacing Sepp Blatter, and was re-elected unopposed in 2019 and 2023.
Infantino has pushed for the expansion of FIFA competitions during his tenure, with this year’s World Cup in North America the first to feature 48 teams, while the women’s tournament in 2023 has been expanded to 32 teams.
Infantino’s tenure has also drawn some criticism over issues such as high World Cup ticket prices and the decision to award the inaugural FIFA Peace Prize to U.S. President Donald Trump at the World Cup draw in December.
Earlier this month, the council of South American football’s governing body (CONMEBOL) said in a statement it would unanimously support the 56-year-old if he decided to seek another term.
-Reuters
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